Right now... the best paint to get for any falcon build is the DOA Falcon set... You can find them here:
http://www.starwars-doa.co.uk/doa-starwars-millennium-falcon-sets-2-c.asp however, they are seriously backlogged and it's one guy doing them. Took me a couple of months to get my order, but they are well worth it and true to the original colors that were used on the original model. DeAgostini just released their Tamiya Paint Set for the Falcon but I'm not as thrilled about them. They are matched as close as possible to the original paints but I still feel they are off and are quite expensive. The magazines have a paint guide of colors that should match, but again, it's difficult to match colors to a prop that was made 40 years ago. Not to mention that the original paints that were used are no longer being made. So... if you want my honest opinion... get the DOA set... its well worth the wait and all the colors are the closest to the original colors that were used. Now for the rest of the various kits, it truly depends on what you feel comfortable with. Here's the skinny on the various types of paints to use and their quirks/benefits:
Acrylics: Acrylic paints are water based... meaning they are pretty easy to clean up after. Just dip your brush in a tub of
water and viola! They also dry relatively fast... usually within a couple of minutes... however, they don't cure for about 24 hours and when they do the colors are alot darker then when they first went on. Acrylics are awesome for flexible plastics like latex model figures because they have a plasticine consistancy when fully cured but require the surface to be roughed up a bit so they can "grip" it or the paint will peel off in sheets. Once dry you can't wash them off with water thou, you have to use
rubbing alcohol. It's difficult to mix acrylic paints because you've got to mix ALOT of the paint and it takes awhile to allow each "test" to cure completely before finding out the color that it ends up being. When it comes to Acrylic paints get premixed colors. They are terrible for color mixing (making your own colors).
Enamels: Enamels have Acrylics beat in color mixing... what you mix is what you get. If you make perfect shade of blue on your palette you can rest assured that it will remain that color even after the paint has dried. They do dry moderately fast (usually about 20-30 minutes) and cure within the same time period (about 24 hours). Cleanup is a bit more complicated thou. They require
paint thinner to cleanup and if you forget to clean your brush thoroughly you might as well just throw it away. They are a bit tougher to remove from a model once they have cured, but it can be done.
Lacquers: These are the roughest of all. They are mainly used for clear coating but I have seen some color lacquer paints. When they are cured they are rock solid and nearly impossible to remove. Most Lacquer paints are oil based and require
white spirits to clean up with. However they are pretty thick and aren't as easy to work with as some of the other types of paint. Lacquers take a couple of hours to dry.
Oils: These can be the hardest paints to work with of them all. They have some very vivid colors, but take a very long time to dry. I've seen some take as long as a few months to dry, but they have come out with some fast drying oils recently but they still require at least 24 hours to dry at all (and that's not curing). Most oils will come in a tube and will require you to "mix" your own colors. They require you to thin them down, again with
white spirits.
Now... with all these types of paints you can achieve some pretty cool effects. One problem with sticking to just one type is that if you paint say a yellow panel using just enamel paint, and then go over that panel with say a blue enamel you could end up with a green panel because the same types of paints can run or interact with each other. However, if you put down a yellow Acrylic paint and then go over it with a blue Enamel, you don't have to worry... they won't mix. Comes in handy for making a good worn look when you can remove one color with thinner and it won't effect the color below.
So my best advice is get to know all the different types of paints and learn how they interact with each other. Mix them, paint with them, and experiment with them. The more you learn about them the more comfortable you will feel about them and the better your work will become.
